I believe that blockchain technology can and will change the world. You wouldn't find me here posting nearly every day if I didn't feel HIVE is the best social blockchain around either.
Even if HIVE didn't exist and there was nothing else like it, I'd still be writing. You see, before I ever heard about blockchain, I decided to start writing.
While searching the internet for an extra source of income back in 2015, I came across affilate marketing. It was the right fit for me, for I didn't have much money to invest and it involved blogging.
Affilate marketing is also a process that builds up over time. That consistent growth, even if slow coming at times, is very attractive to me. It's as much about the process of learning as it is about the earnings, you see.
Writing Was In My Blood Dating Back To Highschool
To be honest, I despised having to write my college application essays. Back in those days, I didn't care for much of anything that I felt I HAD to do.
I did, however, manage to get most of them done. There were a couple I really got into and felt I had produced some decent work. More importantly, I felt the power of the ability to express myself in words.
Writing is an act that to this day helps me cope with life. It helps me have a better understanding of myself as well as the world around me.
Feeling Stuck & Not Contributing Enough To The Family
These are the emotions that kick-started my blogging career back in 2015. I had work at the time but it was sporadic at best. There were times a couple weeks would go by without a day on the books.
Raising two boys and living in an apartment wasn't the glorious life here in Southern California. Still, we had it better than many people and know how to count our blessings.
Despite all this, there were times finances got so bad that it was all my wife and I could do to keep from hurling terrible insults at each other. Stress brings out the worst in people and finances can be a leading cause.
I Wanted To Quit & Even Have... Temporarily
Like anyone, I get fed up and tired too. I don't like to feel that my hardest efforts are going unnoticed. Above that, I have a responsibility to help with family finances. Writing somewhere that brings no financial value isn't behavior I can keep up for very long.
This was a huge part of the reason I stopped writing on that blockchain that I'd rather not mention. I even slowed way down on doing any writing on my own website. It was time to make some changes.
Our two boys had grown older and my wife had taken on more responsibility at her work. That responsibility also included more leeway to take time or hours off.
So I went back to working in the real world and learning about testing concrete. Is it my passion? I enjoy learning about concrete and even being in the field, but writing is my true passion.
We've Grown & We Are Blessed During These Trying Times
The point of all my musings is that as a family and as individuals, we've all stuck at it. We have tripped and fallen along the way but we have seen so much growth.
Even when I had nothing to offer to help other people, I always tried to have empathy. If it weren't for my own selfish addictive behavior in years far past, my own family would certainly be better off financially today.
My sordid past taught me a few things once I was strong enough to ask for help and take it. It taught me to remember my upbringing and the importance of helping other people.
My feelings of hate and self loathing were replaced with a desire to set things straight. To make right to those whom I had wronged. Once set on this path, things didn't get easier. They got harder.
The work is hard and staying positive sometimes even tougher. Without having some outlet to help other people, I never would have made it. Helping others is the key that gets me out of myself.
It puts into perspective the problems I have and stresses I feel when I act to help someone less fortunate. Or even just someone who needs a hand at the moment.
Helping Others Is One Thing I Love About HIVE!
Every day on HIVE I have an opportunity to help another person. It could be someone struggling with an issue or even with finances. I can't give away cash to everyone, but there are times when helping a little extra seems in order.
This is something I truly enjoy doing. If it hadn't been for the free help other people have given me, I wouldn't even be alive to write this today. Giving is a responsibility and a pleasure.
Scrolling through my feed, I see enough selfish and self righteous behavior to enraged me if I allow it. I'd rather be a part of the solution here than a part of the problem. Helping out others as much as I can, even if I'm not a whale or dolphin, seems the best way to do that.
Thanks for reading and as always....
Bottom Image Courtesy Of Hive.io Brand Assets
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I do hope this post gets some attention, since it contains value! At least it does for me :) I was always wondering on this affiliate marketing. Never tried it. Well, I dont even have a blog, Youtube channel or anything that I can connect with affiliate marketing, just my HIVE blog. That said, through the parent of our community, I learned myself a little writing, and blogging. Anyway, does it make sense to start a web-blog and monetise with affiliate marketing? Or would Patreon maybe a better way? How is your web-blog doing? Better than HIVE? Really like to learn from your experiences.
Hey it's super late here, I should already be out. Let's continue the conversation tomorrow....I'd be happy to answer any questions.
Ok, so I'm not real familiar with Patreon. I think it's a place for artists where you can get endorsements or sell your work?
Anyhow, I like the idea of what they call 'owning your own piece of Internet Real Estate'. In short, I own my own website domain and pay a company for web hosting.
Because I own that domain, I can switch to any web host service I want to, though some have contracts. Breaking them just means you don't get the money back that you paid for a year or two of advance service.
My niche is offshore fishing and I use Amazon as an affiliate. It's not the best way to earn, and I need to think of affiliating with better paying programs. Trouble is, in offshore fishing, I haven't found many I want to affiliate with.
Then there is the SEO, or Search Engine Optimization. This is extremely important to learn inside and out as an affiliate marketer. Otherwise, Google won't rank your posts very well and you'll have to pay for your traffic. Amazon doesn't allow paid traffic anyway, another thing to watch out for.
So in short, I could be doing much better in sales if I had picked something other than offshore fishing. But it's what I know well and can write about with passion, so there's another consideration.
Also, if I had dedicated my time solely to my website over the past 5 years, it would be doing much better. I might be bringing in 700 to a thousand a month instead of the 100 or so it makes now.
Wow, you gave me a wealth of information. You point out some of the stuff that I was kinda thinking of. The discoverability of the blog needs to be super good. I do think it'll gonna take a lot of time to get to a thriving blog, and yea, one way is to pay for writers, adds and all. I really have to think this through, if I would like to run my own blog. Steem and HIVE gave me the appetite to write, share my opinions, challenge others to think, get into discussions and all. Still wondering if I should try and create a more independent blog from all of this. I think its only worth it when some revenues will be linked, at least for me; I have so many different interestes and there is just 24hrs in a day :) That said, I'll not bin the idea for sure; Maybe it's gonna be shelved for some time to come :)
Thanks for your extensive response and all the info you gave; Very valuable and appreciated.
Something else, but you may have an opinion on this...
I think HIVE can do with some communities more. So far I came up with the idea of a niche community, one where users discuss any topic, I think we not really have such community and can serve as an example for the outside world. Another community idea I have is MOMENTS. Share some photo/video added some text, or just text describing the moment, thoughts, ideas, questions, emotions or whatever. This one is short form. Not sure how HIVE high HP holders will view such community, but it may serve the mass outside (and inside HIVE).
One last thing to point out. All these skills you learn as an affiliate marketer have value. People pay well for help with their SEO. They pay writers. Also, they pay for keyword research. Another aspect of affiliate marketing is knowing your competition. Some keywords aren't worth even trying to rank for due to the competiton, while others are easy to make Google top of page. People pay well for this type of research too. 🙂
I loved the title, "What is life without giving?".
Helping other's is the best investment we could make for ourselves. It gives returns, which no stock market in the world is capable of.
It was certainly a good read for me.
Thank you for the kind words and for stopping by. One thing I pretty sure of. I can't take it with me when I'm gone.
Absolutely @inalittlewhile
I liked your story, you're a powerful person with good character!
Thanks Mary. The downs in life have taught me that being a good person takes more than just thinking or saying that I am. It takes action and hard work. And I falter, then have to get back up and move my feet again. 🙂
Always get up, always💪
Thanks again for all your support. Hope you've been finding some enjoyment in life and do so today as well. 😁
You are so nice!
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